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The Exile
Part 1 East Rukongai, 64th District: Sabitsura. A vast area with rows of filthy, shabby cottages, inhabited by the poor, the alcoholic, the delinquent. Recently the site of several mass disappearances, whose purpose was not known to the locals. However, they did know Shinigami were in some way responsible, and their low opinion on them did not benefit from that awareness. Certainly not the best place to seek an exiled Soul Reaper. A man observed a single young, brown-haired Shinigami roaming the area. Hidden completely in the shadows, with his spiritual presence impossible to detect, he patiently followed the unknowing Soul Reaper as he continued his search of a certain person. "Tall young male. Black hair, blue eyes, large scar on the face. Have you seen him around?", the Shinigami asked a group of bearded paupers. "I tell ya, there's plenty o' people like that in here", answered one of them with a noticeable irritation. "Snotty brats band in gangs and badger normal people". "His name is Ikiryō Kuragari. He used to be a Shinigami", added the Soul Reaper. His voice was calm, but it was apparent he was slowly losing his patience. "Haven't heard o' him. Now go away, we don't talk with no guys like you", snarled the old man, quickly returning to his rather unfriendly looking companions. Ikiryō smirked. The young Shinigami was persistent, but he could have done better. Anyway, since he already had started getting bored of stalking the emissary from the Gotei 13, he decided to finally reveal himself. Still completely obscured from sight, he followed the upset Soul Reaper into a largely deserted area. Little cottages were dilapidated and uninhabited, presumably as a result of the recent disappearances. A perfect place for a private appointment. Ikiryō silently overtook the Shinigami and stopped some metres in front him. He had waited until he closed the distance, and then dispelled the Bakudō, Kyokkō, which had prevented him from being detected so far. The unnamed Soul Reaper was visibly startled at this unexpected occurrence. However, he quickly collected himself and a stern expression appeared on his face. His hand stopped near the hilt of his Zanpakutō, but remained relatively relaxed. "Quite a conspicuous one, aren't you?", asked Kuragari. "And you are?", the unnamed Shinigami asked, his tone was cold and his expression was hardened, which amused Ikiryō. "Oh, please, Shinigami-san, you are so rude. I thought you would have noticed my remarkable face if I revealed myself", Ikiryō jeered at him. "And after all that trouble in trying to find me", he added, a grin emerging. The unnamed Shinigami, cautious, drew his Zanpakutō on Ikiryō. "Kurokawa Tadayoshi, 5th seat of Squad 5, is here to apprehend you as a prisoner and take you back to the Seireitei", the Shinigami stated. "Kurokawa Tadayoshi-san?", Ikiryō said, slowly laying his hand on his Zanpakutō's hilt, with the amused expression still on his face. "Cute name", Ikiryō jested, "And you are here to apprehend me?", he added. Kurokawa's expression remained unchanged, fixated onto his target. "I see you got some intel on me, after all", Kuragari said. He became much more serious than just moments ago. His eyes narrowed almost into slits. "I have expected you to try to talk me into returning, but you apparently know I do not listen to anyone". He slowly grabbed the dark purple hilt of his sword with his left hand. "The question is...", he uttered as he began to slant slightly, "... whether you can force me to". Part 2 With his Zanpakutō still sheathed, he suddenly disappeared with a faint sound. Split second later, he reappeared right in front of Tadayoshi. He drew his sword in the blink of an eye and the blurred blade rushed to cut the 5th seat. Kurokawa used Shunpo to evade the attack. While it looked like he did evade, he realised that his arm was cut and was bleeding rather profusely. Meanwhile, Kuragari quickly cleaned the blood off his blade with a simple motion and immediately resheathed his sword. "Looks like", Kurokawa said, panting slightly, "That the records wasn't wrong about you", he said, finishing off his sentence. Kurokawa went to draw his Zanpakutō, but, before drawing it completely he chanted a spell. "Hadō #31, Shakkahō!", Kurokawa said sternly. The red ball flew towards Ikiryō at a surprising speed. Ikiryō's eyes widened. He slanted to the side and used Shunpo right before the Kidō could hit him. The red energy ball flew further and exploded, completely destroying a cottage and badly damaging nearby buildings. "A feign. Fine job, but I know some Kidō as well", Kuragari said, quickly raising his left arm. "Hadō #32, Ōkasen!", he shouted, and a wide arc of yellow energy emerged from his palm. Kurokawa emerged from his stupor from Ikiryō's dodge of his Shakkahō and returned to his blank and cold expression. "Bakudō #39, Enkōsen", Kurokawa said plainly. Kurokawa's Bakudō managed to completely block Ikiryō's powerful Hadō spell until it was no more. "Sorry", he said as the smoke of the Kidō dissipated. "But if there is one area of combat I can out-do you in at all, it is Kidō", Kurokawa stated violently. Kurokawa drew his Zanpakutō and lunged at Ikiryō, his sword crying out for blood. Kuragari promptly unsheathed his Zanpakutō, with its blade moving so fast it appeared as a silver beam. It clashed with his opponent's sword, striking some sparks because of their sheer impetus. "Finally, a fight between Shinigami, not some wizards", said Kuragari with a smirk. Then, he suddenly moved his Zanpakutō to throw Tadayoshi off-balance, and proceeded to attack him with a flurry of rapid cuts. The 5th seat managed to withstand the onslaught and with a quick slash eventually prompted Ikiryō to jump back. "Good", stated Kuragari, once again sheathing his sword. "But I sincerely hope you do not intend to subdue me with that", he added with a grimace on his face. "You would be better off fighting with me seriously, or I might feel offended". Kurokawa once again charged toward Ikiryō, raising his blade in an attempt to attack, but as he got to Ikiryō. "Hadō #33, Soukatsui!", Kuro shouted, as the blue energy enveloped the two Shinigami. Kuragari quickly emerged from the resulting explosion and landed several metres further. His already worn-out Shihakushō, as well as the skin of his exposed forearms were visibly singed by the spell's power. "Very well. You seem to rely heavily on your Kidō. I would like to see your Shikai, though", he said with a solemn voice. "I shall go ahead and show you mine". Whilst saying this he grabbed the scabbard with his right hand, drew the sword with the other and made a swift, horizontal slash. "Fade away into nothingness, Shi no Hōyō", he proclaimed. Part 3 Both the Zanpakutō and the sheath glowed briefly, and suddenly changed their shape. Merging with Kuragari's hands, they transformed into a pair of black-and-silver, armoured gauntlets with very sharp, claw-like fingers. He clenched his fingers several times, as if getting accustomed to his Shikai's form. "Your turn", he uttered. Ignoring his jeers, Kurokawa used his Shunpo in an attempt to get a quick hit on Ikiryō. He attacked but Ikiryō simply dodged out of the way, countering with his own attack. "Hmph, you are beginning to bore me, at least try to make it work", Ikiryō said with a solemn face. As he said this, he noticed Kurokawa muttering an incantation. "-all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man!" "That won't work on me", Ikiryō said bluntly, using Shunpo to promptly get behind Kurokawa, ready to strike. "-On the wall of blue flame, inscribe a twin lotus-Hadō #73 Sōren Sōkatsui!", Kurokawa desperately shouted at the top of his lungs, as the incomplete Kidō violently exploded around them. As the smoke cleared Ikiryō managed to evade most of the blast with only a burnt arm. Kurokawa however, landed on his front seemingly unconscious, a half of his Shihakushō destroyed by the explosion along with major burns on his skin. "Eh...", Ikiryō sighed with disappointment and began to walk away, before turning back in surprise. Kurokawa, staggering back up on his feet managed to say: "So, guess I didn't think that one out properly." Ikiryō kept quiet, staring at him as Kuro looked up at him. "Very well, you, wanted to see, my Shikai, well then so be it, don't blink", Kurokawa blurted out. He was loosing his focus, he couldn't see straight, and his body felt heavy. "Go on, then", Ikiryō whispered. Kurokawa managed to stand up straight at last, he positioned his Zanpakutō in what looked like a horizontal slashing manoeuvre. "May the Fangs of Heaven Bear Upon Us...Ookami no Shoukan!", Kuro shouted. A burst of reiatsu came forth, mildly surprising Ikiryō. "Intruiging", he said, getting ready to fight. "Now...", Kurokawa said, raising his irregularly shaped blade to Ikiryō. "Let's finish this", he said in a grim tone. "As you wish", responded Kuragari with a cold smile. He raised one of his hands outstretched, with the fingers pointing at Tadayoshi. "Yami no Ibara", he declared. All of a sudden, five bullets of spiritual energy shot from the tips of his Shikai's fingers and rushed toward the Soul Reaper. "Hadō #58, Tenran", Kurokawa calmly said, he placed his hand on his Zanpakutō as the Kidō was cast. Kurokawa's Zanpakutō absorbed his Kidō, enveloping his blade with the high speed winds of the Kidō he summoned. In one swift motion, Kuro planted the tip of his Zanpakutō into the ground, causing a wall of air to emerge from the ground, which blew away the reiatsu bullets. "With attacks like that", Kurokawa said in a dry tone, "You would be lucky to even hit me". "I see", replied Ikiryō. An aura of indigo spiritual energy surrounded him briefly, creating a sudden gust of wind. He assumed a fighting stance and narrowed his eyes. "Let's go. Bakudō #21, Sekienton!", he shouted as he placed his hands down on the ground. Red smoke burst forth, engulfing him entirely. Tadayoshi raised his sword and prepared to defend himself, but was unsure what to do next. Then, he heard a disembodied voice: "Bakudō #9, Hōrin!" An orange energy tendril shot from the red cloud and wrapped around Kurokawa's body. Immediately afterward it pulled him with great force, lifting him off the ground. Kuragari promptly emerged from the smoke, rushing at him and preparing to strike. "Bunkatsu Genjitsu", he declared as he was about to slash with his armoured gauntlet's sharp claws. "Too Fast!", Kurokawa thought, not even having time to block. Kurokawa flew back and landed on the ground with a loud thud, coughing up his blood in the process. While he lay there Ikiryō landed gently on the ground, looking solemn at the injured Shinigami. As he began to walk away though, he felt a spike of weak reiatsu emerge from Kurokawa. "I'm impressed", he stated as he turned around to face Tadayoshi. "Even though you obviously lack experience, you have quite a potential. I am surprised you're a mere 5th seat". He slowly closed the distance between him and Kurokawa, who persistently tried to stand up. He stopped just a metre from him, looking at him with a stern expression on his face. Then, he lifted his lips in a sardonic smile. He raised both of his hands. Tadayoshi, who had managed to crouch by that time, looked up at his opponent with a determined expression. As he was preparing to block the impending attack, Kuragari clasped his hands. His gauntlets glowed briefly and turned back into an already sheathed sword. Whilst Kurokawa tried to understand what the other Shinigami was doing, Ikiryō simply placed the scabbard at his hip. "Congratulations", Kuragari said. "You win." Part 4 A chilling silence filled the area, for a small while Kuragari looked down at the struggling Shinigami, he then noticed that Tadayoshi was trying to say something. "Don't....", Kurokawa stammered, barely standing at this point, "Don't....you dare.....pity me!", he stammered, his voice shaking due to the amount of energy he was using just to stay conscious. His attempt at shouting at Ikiryō drained the last of his energy, he fell on to his knees again, panting. "Easy, easy. No need to feel offended", replied Kuragari, standing next to him. "You are supposed to bring me back to Seireitei, correct? I am willing to follow you now. You should be a bit more happy, if surprised." He leant and offered Kurokawa his hand. The 5th seat slowly raised his head and delivered him a death stare in response. "I apologise for hurting your pride", said Ikiryō with a serious tone. "I suppose I got a bit overly excited at the prospect of a good fight. Also, I tried to test your attitude, but it got slightly out of hand as well. Anyway, you passed." "What... do you... mean?", asked Tadayoshi, with his furious grimace gradually fading away from his face. "I've actually wanted to return to Seireitei since quite some time, but I couldn't figure out how to do this myself. Then, you suddenly appeared and provided me with the opportunity to do just that. I didn't want it to look as if you simply forced me to come back, though, so I wanted to test whether you can convince me in a different way. You did", explained Kuragari, offering his hand once again. With some hesitation, Kurokawa eventually grabbed it and stood up. He swayed, but he managed to regain his balance on his own. "How?", said Kurokawa, with the curiosity driving away anger from his face. "I didn't go easy on you, and yet you stand there, enraged and determined, probably even capable of fighting some more. Pretty impressive for a 5th seat officer", commented Ikiryō. "Let's go, determined or not, you need some medical treatment", he added after taking a look at Tadayoshi's injuries. "I'm fine", Kurokawa replied. "Move, you go first. Don't try any dirty tricks", he ordered him with slightly enforced ferocity. He deactivated his Shikai, but did not put it back in sheath. "Fine, fine. No tricks, I promise", responded Kuragari with feigned reproach. "I won't take any chances. Bakudō #63, Sajō Sabaku", calmly said Tadayoshi. Ikiryō observed with visible shock as a thick chain of golden light quickly came down from the sky to completely bind his upper body. He looked at Kurokawa with a smirk on his face. "Very clever, Tadayoshi-san, but I'll make sure to repay you for that some day", he claimed with a mixture of amusement and threatening. "We'll see about that. Now go." The two battle-worn Shinigami finally took to the road, Tadayoshi leading the restrained Kuragari, both heading toward the distant gates of the Seireitei. End of Chapter Category:Roleplay